In January of this year, ColdFire Brewing entered into a distribution agreement with Bigfoot Beverages, a Eugene-based company that serves Southwestern and Central Oregon. It was a giant step for the Dan and Stephen Hughes, the brothers who launched the brewery in 2016. This year, ColdFire will move the bulk of its operations to a 20-barrel production brewery in Junction City, about 15 miles north of Eugene. They’ve also added long-time Willamette Valley brewer Dave Marliave to the team. “We were the third largest self-distributing brewery in Oregon,” says Dan. “We hit this tipping point, we h ..read more

On Saturday, February 24, at its Hellshire Mini-Fest in Eugene, Oakshire owner Jeff Althouse announced the upcoming opening of its third location, Oakshire Commons, a 2,300 square-foot pub located in the historic and newly renovated Rivett Building at 448 Main St. in Springfield. Along with its wide range of ales, lagers, and barrel-aged beer, Oakshire will bring a slice of its Northwest Portland Beer Hall to Springfield in the form of Detroit-style pizza. Oakshire founder Jeff Althouse made the rounds to Springfield businesses in advance of the public announcement, connecting with Main Street ..read more

Would you take wine advice from a brewer? Three Oregon breweries began producing and releasing wine over the last few years. Their processes, and the wine as proof, offer a glimpse at the beauties and pitfalls of another ancient drink in our modern world. This is a masterclass in wine, brought to you by brewers. There may be some cognitive dissonance associated with a brewery making wine. While brewer-vineyard relationships are not new, the trend for breweries is to start their own seltzer program. However, the three breweries profiled here are Alesong Brewing & Blending, Block 15 Brewing ..read more

After 21 years, Eugene’s KLCC radio station will no longer host its annual Brewfest. The station made the announcement this weekend. Beerstone contacted station manager Jim Rondeau, who cited rising costs and lower turnout as the main reasons for discontinuing its biggest public fundraiser. “Unfortunately, 2023 continued a multi-year trend of rising production costs and declining revenue,” says Rondeau. “Rather than dramatically raise prices or scale down the event in ’24, we determined it would be best to look for options that would not sacrifice the spirit of Brewfest and, ultimately, disapp ..read more

Some beer styles exist on the fringes of our consciousness, and it takes just a nudge for one to revel in the discovery of something new on which to sip. This Saturday, dark lagers see the limelight as ColdFire Brewing hosts Dark Lager Fest from noon-9pm, featuring eight beers across five styles from Oregon breweries. The fest was inspired by the coincidental release of Czech-style dark lagers from ColdFire and Arable Brewing. The fest is $25 and includes a flight, a commemorative Kostritzer-style mug filled with your choice of dark lager, and, immediately useful, a Dark Lager Fest beanie. Col ..read more

Finally, some good news! Pita & beer! Gratitude Brewing will re-reopen its taproom November 1 with a fresh taplist and Mediterranean/Middle Eastern food menu in collaboration with Tradewinds Cafe. The South Eugene staple, known colloquially as Jiffy Mart, makes some of the finest Greek food in town. While Gratitude is still for sale, owner Tristan Cooley said that being able to reopen without having to run both the brewery and restaurant is a relief. Tradewinds owners Mark Head and Abbie Shadrick approached him about opening a second retail space, and the pieces fell into place. Guests can ..read more

It’s been quiet here at Beerstone. Physical labor and life-side machinations have contributed, though a large part was not quite knowing what to write about not drinking. I thought at first, “I’ll highlight non-alcoholic beverages and where to find them!” (Shout out to High Street Tonics!). But as the month slid by, some pounds slid off, and I guzzled can after can of fizzy, low-calorie, probiotic soda, I didn’t really feel like preaching or “sharing my sobriety story.” Until now, sorta. This is my third Sobertober, and by far the easiest. I spent my free time in the first couple weeks rebuild ..read more

Cheers to the Land makes it easy to help protect Oregon farmland and taste Oregon-grown goodness all at once. October 10 marks the official release date for the 17 beers and ciders brewed around the state in collaboration with the Oregon Agricultural Trust (OAT) and in partnership with Goschie Farms and Gold Rush Malt. Here in the Willamette Valley, Alesong Brewing & Blending, Block 15 Brewing, ColdFire Brewing, and Falling Sky Brewing participated in Cheers to the Land, and bring us a nice breadth of flavors. Alesong blended up a barrel-aged saison aged on rhubarb and conditioned with loc ..read more

This week, seasonal beer season kicks off with the one-two punch of Oktoberfest and fresh hop beer releases. In today’s bifurcated craft beer market, in which IPAs and lagers share top billing on our collective palate, these beers ought to bring out the dilettantes, racking up Untappd points like Pokemon hunters and commenting on the grassiness levels of fresh Strata. (Why, oh why did I have to bring up Pokemon?!) They ought to bring you out, too, dear reader. Here in the Willamette Valley, there are a number of events in the coming weeks that focus on one or the other. Do your forearm stretch ..read more

For nine days beginning Friday, August 25, Corvallis will be a hub of fun and creative beer events, including the wonderful Septembeerfest under the trees in Avery Park. Corvallis Beer Week events run the gamut from tastings with brewers to beer pairing dinners to educational tours. Sponsored by the taproom and food truck pod Common Fields, Corvallis Beer Week invites participants to engage deeper with the beer community. The event list can be found on the Visit Corvallis website, and on Facebook. The week begins with a kickoff march in downtown Corvallis to officially set the mood. CBW is boo ..read more